Who are we kidding, Running is painful, painful to get out in the cold, ignoring the "crazy guy" looks running in the rain, trying to not get the stink of tech clothes spread into the rest of the house, juggle schedules so you can get that weekend long run in, finding the shoes that don't give blisters after your favorite shoe has changed drastically for no good reason, explaining that you are not terminally ill to be weighing only 125 lbs, trying not to limp so as not to hear another lecture about how I am ruining my joints with running etc etc.

But the feeling I get after a fast finish run, seeing the world wake up as you run, the run after storm with the clouds to one side, bright sunshine the other with a rainbow in front of you, seeing places and sights most people will never get to see makes me forget that pain.

No matter what Nobby says, races are very uncomfortable and painful at the end... in a good way. I have very few training runs that are in the same category of discomfort.

xor

posted: 12/7/2012 at 9:46 PMmodified: 12/7/2012 at 9:46 PM

As is usually the case, people are meaning different things by the word "painful".

RWOL has brought us the term "pain cave". I would like to send that one back. Mahalo.

skygazer

posted: 12/7/2012 at 10:14 PM

Before I picked up running, one day I was talking about it with a very good friend of mine who's probably never been athletic in all her life. And her response was running/exercise=pain. I didn't quite understand why she thought that way. Now her kids are entering elementary school and she had them playing a few sports. I guess she has come to realize that running/sports is a lot of fun, even just running around. Just look at the kids you would know what I mean. Running outside is especially liberating.

Another thing I noticed is for a lot of over-weight people (my friend is one of them) who's been inactive most of their life just moving around is not comfortable (why they never want to become active), running would be unimaginably painful for them (they imagine it'd be pain considering how out of breath it's for them just "walking" up the stairs (so they never take the stairs)). Well, the people who created those ads, and their target costumers as well, most likely are among this group of people.

It hurts near the end of a race. But you have 100% control of it. You can choose to stop the discomfort if you want to. But you won't. (something more satisfying than giving up the hurt).

I think we are talking about muscular pain or pain in the lungs here, as opposed to pain due to a specific injury. You should only feel pain in a race, and in a masochistic sort of way, it is good pain: you're hurting, you want it to stop, you fight with the urge to stop or ease up; we all love and hate this at the same time, I think, when you dig really deep (otherwise you are not racing, you are just running al ittle faster than normal)

This. When I see those posters I don't think of an injury type pain... I think of the burning in your legs or the muscle fatigue during a race. When I race a 5K it hurts, but in a "good" way. I don't think you can race a 5K or less full out and not have some sort of discomfort. Should a regular training run be painful though? No, I don't think so.

As is usually the case, people are meaning different things by the word "painful".

RWOL has brought us the term "pain cave". I would like to send that one back. Mahalo.

"Pain Cave" is a cyclists indoor training area.

The pain that hurts the worse is the imagined pain. One of the most difficult arts of racing is learning to ignore the imagined pain and just live with the present pain (which is always bearable.) - Jeff

2014 Goals:

Stay healthy

Enjoy life

MrNamtor

posted: 12/7/2012 at 11:56 PMmodified: 12/7/2012 at 11:58 PM

I don't find training or racing to be painful in any way.

Someone said that if racing doesn't hurt you're not really racing. I'll have to think about this. I am not a very experienced racer.

Biking Bad

finnegan begin again

posted: 12/8/2012 at 12:37 AM

Of course it's painful. If it weren't we wouldn't know to slow down or stop. People who don't perceive pain destroy themselves. Finding that threshold of tolorable or dangerous pain is what training is supposed to teach us. Racing reinforces it.

It's exhilarating to squeeze through that tunnel vision into the finish line knowing you left little behind. Your lungs and legs burning.

Just one man's unwavering opinion.....subject to change

"... the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value..." Thomas Paine Dec 23, 1776 The Crisis